As the only NCI-designated cancer center for inland Northern California's approximately 6 million people, the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center (UCDCCC) provides both primary cancer cares to a large and growing population, and serves as the tertiary referral center for specialty cancer care for the region. For this applicatin to become a NCTN Network Lead Academic Participating Site, led by Drs. David R Gandara, MD, and Richard K Valicenti, MD UCDCCC will leverage an already established multidisciplinary team of cancer investigators from medical oncology, radiation oncology, surgical specialties, molecular biology/genomics, pathology, radiology, biostatistics, research nursing, and clinical research support to provide clinical trials expertise, scientific and administrative leadership and accrual in NCTN studies across a broad range of tumor types and throughout the cooperative group network. UCDCCC and its faculty have a long-standing and proven track record of impactful contribution to national cooperative group activities, including SWOG, RTOG, GOG, ACRIN, and ACOSOG, as well as to other NCI-related committees and initiatives. Expanding this effort to the NCTN concept will increase both the scope and reach of participation, including integrating additional researchers and providing career development opportunities for new faculty and junior investigators. Continuing a strong track record in cooperative group translational and clinical research leadership, UCDCCC is poised to exploit unique institutional strengths in serving as a laboratory resource for cooperative group trials and contributing to hypothesis-driven clinical research. Based on over two decades of already serving as the clinical trials hub for accrual to NCI-sponsored studies throughout North-Central California, expansion to the NCTN creates a number of additional opportunities for UCDCCC to both increase main site accrual and to extend access to NCTN trials into the community through the UCDCCC Cancer Care Network and affiliate site, which includes substantial underserved, rural and minority patient populations. In summary, UCDCCC represents an interdisciplinary organizational and leadership structure linked to a clinical trials program that will achieve the coals of the NCTN and ensure robust accrual.

Public Health Relevance

This UCDCCC UI0 program, to be pursued by an already well-established and accomplished multidisciplinary clinical research team, will provide scientific and administrative leadership to NCTN, while also ensuring robust accrual and access to cooperative group trials throughout the North-Central California community. This will contribute to the NCTN's goal for improving human health through the quality completion of large innovative, clinical trials across a wide range of tumor types.